The crash was nearly three football fields from the RV. The motorcycle was a twisted shattered mess. There was dark blue fiberglass pieces littering the ground around the trail. From the looks of it was some kind of street bike. Those were no really meant for the dirt roads. Let alone some thing that barely qualified as road. The biggest question was, where was the rider? I could not remember if Max knew how to ride a motorcycle or not. Would the rider eve be alive after such a crash?
A soft groan caught my attention. Turning to my right, there was the rider. they wore a dark blue helmet that seemed to match the fiberglass of the motorcycle. The rider was bigger than Max in the shoulders and in height. It’s an wore a leather jacket, dark colored jeans, and what looked like biker boots. No my worries were if this man was a human or an Argon. My breath hitched in my throat as I slowly stepped toward the being on the ground.
Kneeling beside the man, I cautiously reached toward his helmet. I had to figure out if he was human or not. My hands were trembling softly my fingers passed over the shield of the helmet. A lot of Argons had pointed ears or animal like features. Some even had animal like eyes. But this man could be as human as myself. And was only heading out this way to get to the refugee camp hidden at the end of the road we were on. Firmly grasping the helmet I began to gingerly remove it. I didn’t want to hurt this being even if they were a Argon. I was not some cruel individual.
Setting the helmet aside, I was shocked to see a handsome strong face. His hair was a short kept and jet black. His hair was tossed from the helmet and his bottom lip bleeding. He seemed to have bitten his lip in the crash. At least his groan meant he was a live. Looking him over carefully, I found
“Are you awake.” I gently squeezed the man’s shoulder.
The man’s eyes half opened groggily. Sapphire blue eyes peered up into the sunset sky from under heavy eyelids. No animal eyes, that was a plus. No pointed ears, or animal like features. That was a relief, a big relief. My eyes made it their way back to those sapphire blue eyes. I was mesmerized by them. Giving my head a shake, I brought myself back to reality.
“Can you get up?” I asked softly, I leaned further over the man, to catch his attention.
Those blue eyes widened for a moment. Could he be shocked to be alive? Or had he expected an Argon? That was probably the case. He was safe with me and Scott.
“Eve! Eve! That man fell down!” Scott exclaimed loudly from beside me.
Scott’s loud voice caused me to job slightly. Where did he come from? He had to have gotten lonely opportunity curious to where I was. Or he might have been scared by something and came to find me.
“Shh, Scott that’s not polite.” I I lightly scolded the boy, turning my upper body toward Scott, slightly.
Scott nodded, giving me puppy dog eyes. He was watching me very intently. At least he understood that he had been inappropriate. That was good, it was hard to get him to realize that sometimes.
“W-what happened?” A deep voice coughed from below me.
My attention snapped back to the man. He was looking straight at me. He looked to be in a great deal of pain.
“You crashed your motorcycle.” I answered him. “I’m Evelyn but can call me Eve. And this handsome boy is my baby brother, Scott.” I smiled, glancing back to Scott, causing him to giggle happily.
Even in the horrible situation before us, I couldn’t help. But smile at my brother, his giggle had that affect on me. His laugh was so innocent that it touched me every time.
“Claude.” The man grunted, attempting to sit up.
“Hi Claude.” Scott tried not to yell, but his voice was still slightly loud.
I helped Claude stay up in a sitting position. Thankfully it seemed that the leather chaps he wore, helped protect him from Road Rash. Though the leather jacket and gloves seemed to be in tatters. His chaps were mere shreds but his jeans were intact at least. This guy was tough! Maybe the crash was not as bad as the dust cloud made it seem.
“You’re lucky, you could have been hurt far worse than this. But you. Seem relatively okay.” I began brushing the dust off of his clothes.
Claude looked like the lights were on but no one was home. So talking to him was pointless. I had to get him to the RV before he really passed out. There was no way I cold carry a full grow man that was almost a foot taller than myself. But if Scott helped me, we may be able to drag the poor man back.
“Scott, please help me with Claude.” I stood, then hooked my arms under Claude’s.
Scott rushed forward rushed forward, grabbing hold oh Claude’s left arm. This man, Claude, was tall an muscular. It was no surprise I was having so much trouble moving the man. Being a slim 5’6” young woman it was a surprise I was moving him at all. I was determined though, I was not leave this man out in the elements at all. There was still a small possibility that Claude was an Argon, but until I knew for sure, I was not going to abandon him. That would just be wrong. And if he was, maybe he was see my generosity as something good and just leave us alone.
After shutting the cargo hatch, I headed inside. Scott was on the couch playing with his action figures. And watching another cartoon. My eyes moved down the narrow hallway to the faux wooden door of the bedroom. Claude was out cold on the bed. I had barely managed to get him in the the bed before he completely lost consciousness. There was no telling when he might wake. He was probably going to have a few more bruises from me trying to get him in to the RV and bed. Though all in all he seemed fine. Thankfully he had been wearing the protective gear he should have been wearing.
“Scott are you ready for dinner?” I questioned entering the kitchenette area.
“Mac and Cheese.”Scott abandoned his action figures to sit at the dining booth.
That was doable and thankfully easy. After the evening that had transpired, I was hoping to have a simple dinner for my baby brother. Quickly I made a serving of a box max and cheese for Scott. After getting him situated and eating, I warmed a can of chicken noodle soup. Claude needed to eat something, if he was awake. Something like soup would be the best option, if he had an injured jaw from the crash at all. And it would be easy on his stomach. If he was still out I would eat the soup as my dinner, so no matter there would be no waste of our food rations.
After making sure the front door had its pad lock in place, I took the soup toward the bedroom. the lock was for protection from the outside and from Scott going out o explore if he decided he was bored. If we were home it wouldn’t be a worry. The most Scott had ever done was either playin his toy box, or come to my room and crawl in to bed with me. But he was curious and the only other door lead outside besides the bedroom. He was by no means trying to run away.
Slipping into the tiny room, I turned the lock, to keep Scott out. Claude needed peace and quiet. There was just enough space to walk on each side of the bed. There was maybe three and a half feet or four feet between the end of the bed and the door. On the back walls to each side of the head of the bed was a built in table. Above the tables and head of the bed was the clothing storage and such. The bed itself was a king size, and easily fit Scott, Max, and myself.
I had already brought in a bowl of cool water with a washcloth. I had planned to try and clean up Claude to the best of my ability if he was not awake. Clearly the man was still out cold, so I set the bowl of soup off to the side, as I sat on the edge of the bed. Claude’s face somehow had dirt on it along with the blood from his lip. He had oil on his neck and chin from the wreck. I feared he may jolt awake at the sudden feeling of something cool on his face. He may even get violent, in fear for his life.
“Please, please, don’t hit me.” I whispered wringing out the damp washcloth.
Carefully, cautiously, I wiped some dirt from Claude’s cheek. I couldn’t help but let out a sigh of relief, as I continued to gently clean his face. He was out cold this should be easier than I thought. Well it seemed that way. I still kept myself ready for him to open his eyes at the very least. Moving toward his lips, I made sure to have an extra gentle touch, as to not hurt him.
A groan escaped Claude’s lips, as his fingers gently wrapped around my wrist. His grip was loose, but I could feel a strength in his fingers, a strength that could easily hurt me. Slowly those deep blue eyes fluttered open. Groggily he stared at the ceiling, seeming to get his witts about himself.
“W-where am I?” Claude groaned softly, blinking a few times.
“You’re safe.” I assured softly. “We’re really far from the city.” A soft smile spread across my lips.
Claude closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. He kept his grip on my wrist. He was scared, I didn’t blame him. Anyone would be frightened in his situation. All the men in my family had been the stoic military type, so I had learned to read subtle clues from ‘tough men’.
“Don’t worry Claude, there are no Argons here. It’s just us.” I spoke softly, assuring the man on the bed.
Claude opened his eyes, then slowly moved those sapphire ones to my emerald ones. His eyes widened, was he shocked to see me? Why would he be shocked to see me? He released my wrist, letting his hand fall to the bed.
“I can’t remember why I was out here.” Claude mumbled as he began to try to sit up.
Claude flinched as I gently held him in place against the propped pillows. A pained groan escaped his lips. There was no way that he was ready to sit up on his own or do anything but rest. Setting the washcloth back in the water bowl, I lifted the soup in my hands.
“You need to eat something.” I leaned toward Claude, bowl and spoon in hand.
“I can feed myself.” Claude huffed, but flinched when trying to raise both arms at once.
It would be hours before Claude would be able to move without flinching. Someone would be helping him no matter what. He reminded me a lot of my oldest brother Roger. A true ‘tough guy’ that didn’t need any help. Though my brother had a soft side when it came to family, especially Scott.
“Please, you’re still hurt. I’ll help you.” I frowned, but stayed leaned toward Claude, spoon at the ready.
Claude also frowned, but relaxed into the propped pillows. He opened his mouth accepting the waiting spoon. I could tell that the situation was slightly embarrassing for him. It was understandable. Claude was a big ‘tough guy’ and I was some strange woman with no connection to him. I had been a caregiver my entire life so I saw no problem in the situation.
“I wont tell anyone about this. It’s our little secret.” I grinned scooping up another spoonful of soup.
Claude gave me a smirk, then opened his mouth. The mood lightened and those deep blue eyes were no longer wary of me. We shared a peaceful quiet, which was rare for me. With Scott being a loud individual, silent moments were precious and rare.
